Roseanne herself was like a breath of fresh air (okay more like a typhoon) just by being who she was and not making fun of it. She had to be the first woman of size on television that was shown to be sexually active and the object of physical attraction for a partner. The best thing about that is that it was never made into a big deal. It was just the attraction between a husband and wife like on any other sit-com.
Long before it became fashionable "Roseanne" opened the closet door on her show and had a Lesbian as a main character. The show dealt with issues that were hardly ever seen on television, and not just controversial ones, but real ones.
Breast reduction surgery is not something that one sees talked about very often, but as with a lot of large women, Roseanne's character was faced with having to undergo that procedure for her health. The whole episode was dealt with in the show's usual mix of humour and good taste, so as an audience we were able to appreciate what a woman faced with this procedure goes through emotionally and mentally.
Roseanne and her television family were some of the most real people you were liable to see in prime time. There still hasn't been a live action family that has come close to capturing as truthful a depiction of life for lower middle class Americans as this show did. It may have helped people find humour in their daily lives, but there is no way this show could have been considered a distraction from everyday reality.
Which brings us back to Roseanne's quote that started this whole post about pop culture just being a distraction from the real world. There are two ways one could look at that statement. The first is to say, well yeah, isn't that the point of pop culture anyway, to provide light entertainment and not have any basis in reality?
If you're of that mind, well the argument has nowhere to go, because you can just agree with her assessment and get on with watching television and blocking out the world. To be honest there's a lot of truth in that sentiment anyway. Many is the time I've made the conscious decision to watch a movie that is deliberately escapist so that I don't have to deal with mine or the world's reality.
Article comments
1 - Geek's Girl
This was a very well written and thought out piece gypsyman - thank you.
2 - Bliffle
Any of the famous celebrities I've seen at the grocery checkout counter seem to lead really boring lives. I think they're pallid imitations of the celebrities of years past. Yes, boys and girls, we have a celebrity gap.
What happened? Why are todays celebs such bores? Is it the water? Did fluoridation ruin American gossip? It's gotten so bad that I find that even MY life is more interesting than Brad Pitts! When I reflect on my own misspent history, usually only involuntarily in the dark of sleepless night when the devils of conscience appear to torment me, while I'm properly shamed at my transgressions and misdemeanors, I also have to smile at the great fun I had and the rewards of life experience and exploration.
Even celebrity miscreants seem to be one-note sinners. Maybe they spent 10 years strung out on heroin. Duh. So, they were blotto for 10 years.
Maybe I should write an autobiography. Nah, nobody would believe it.
3 - Don Baiocchi
"Roseanne and Milwaukee"? Any "Roseanne" fan knows the show was set in Lanford, Illinois, which was outside Chicago. Tsk tsk.
Otherwise, great post.
4 - Pat Fish
I love pop culture.
But I don't love pop culture because I really care.
No I don't care who Brad Pitt is having a baby with. But I'll forever be fascinated by how the celebrated arrange their lives so that they can grab the headlines. The whole process fascinates me.
Jennifer Aniston has had her tits shown in every major publication yet she continues to assert photographers are catching her unawares.
Captain Kirk sells his kidney stone on E-Bay and I scratch my head in amazement. Anything, absolutely anything, to keep the name out there, to hang onto a fading career, to be considered for the next role.
Hey, it's how they make a living. I smirk at all the silliness and wonder how low they will go.
It's fun to watch people make fools of themselves. Especially when they are making fools of themselves on purpose.
5 - A.L. Harper
Excellent piece! I'm impressed with your depth and sensitivity. One might think this subject had touched you in a personal way.
I think the reason that “celebrity culture” has gotten so out of hand is that it isn’t as ugly as what has been going on in the real world for that last 5 years. It’s easier to look at than what is really out there. We have created it so that we have something to distract us but I don’t think that it is, in itself, a distraction unless we want it to be. It’s just too boring and pointless to be.
6 - Scott Butki
Wonderful piece. It's not every day you get something this weighty and thoughtful about a woman known for grabbing her crotch during a baseball game.